


A Day At The Beach

by Between_A_Dream



Series: The Taglarin Mythic BuffyVerse [1]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Friendship, Humor, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-10
Updated: 2016-06-10
Packaged: 2018-07-14 04:41:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7153994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Between_A_Dream/pseuds/Between_A_Dream
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Expansion on 5x01 when the gang spends the day at the beach. No rain comes after Willow does her fire spell. Xander spills his ice cream, Tara and Willow kiss for the first time in front of their friends, Riley and Buffy put a sneak attack into action.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Day At The Beach

**Author's Note:**

> Officially the first story and the beginning of the series known as The Taglarin Mythic BuffyVerse.

It was a surprising question to Tara when she had answered the phone that day and Willow had asked her to accompany her to the beach with the Scooby Gang. After all, they were much more her friends than the blonde's. Still, she had said yes, and was strangely excited for a day relaxing with her girlfriend and the people the red haired witch considered family. She had been daring in her outfit that day and wore a pair of shorts, an occurrence that even in the comfort and darkness of her own dorm room was rare in and of itself.

She had been even more nervous when the car that pulled up in front of the college to pick her up contained Buffy, Xander, and Riley. There was no sign of Willow or Anya, the only two members of the group she felt completely comfortable around. Willow for obvious reasons, Anya because the two were both relatively new to the gang and connected on the fact that they both looked at the world a little differently.

"Hey Tara, Will said she was finishing up some class work and Anya offered to help her out, they said they'll meet us there," Xander smiled warmly, but she still felt heat rising in her cheeks as she gave a weak smile back and climbed into the back seat beside the taller man.

Riley sat in the front of the car with Buffy, the two laughing and singing along like kids to the radio with their hands laced together. Xander seemed perfectly content watching the couple with amusement. Tara held her gaze at her hands, clutching her deck of tarot cards a little too tightly.

"Hey, uh... Tara?" It was only when she heard her name that she moved her eyes, or possibly even blinked. She looked up at Xander who was looking at her and the cards. "You read fortunes?" he asked, gesturing to the deck. Again, she felt a blush spreading across her face.

"Oh... I uh... W-well sort of... I'm not... I'm n-not like an expert... Or anything... B-but uh, my mother... She taught m-me when I was l-li-little," the blonde could hardly stammer the words out, and Xander couldn't help feel bad. He knew very little about the blonde witch his best friend was so taken with, but it was obvious to him, as it would be to anyone who spent two minutes talking with the girl, that she was painfully shy. Hoping to change that, or at the very least, make her feel a bit more welcome into the group, he kept the conversation going.

"You think you could uh... Read mine when we get to the beach? It's ok if you're not very good," he gave a sympathetic smile and his eyes held a flicker of hope. Tara started to respond, couldn't find the words, shut her mouth, and answered him with a nod. The rest of the car ride was silent between the two of them, and Tara slightly hoped that Xander would forget about the fortune telling. She always misread things under pressure, and what better way to be put under pressure than to be asked to impress her girlfriend's best friend who knew next to nothing about her?

When Buffy parked the car, she and Riley took off towards the sand to find a spot, Xander close behind and Tara a few steps further back. The beach was relatively empty, considering that it was only 9 hours past the last stroke of midnight. She was silent as they pointed to a spot where they already had a grill set up, and she sat down on the sand. Xander sat beside her, smiling at her, and she knew he hadn't forgotten. She didn't think he would anyways. Slowly, the blonde Wiccan spread the cards out in front of her, focusing her energy into it's lightest state. She felt her body's weight disappear and suddenly she was alone in the world, surrounded by the brightest colors of spiritual essence and light.

"Choose six cards," her voice no longer possessed the stuttering, quiet tone it had just minutes before. It was now filled with a sense of powerful calm, with underlying tones of incredible foresight. It almost frightened Xander, but he carefully selected six cards from the deck. She slowly flipped each card over. She didn't remember the next few minutes. Her voice did not reach her own ears, her vision did not reach her own eyes. When she finished, she felt the light around her cease and suddenly she was back in her own body. Xander was staring at her with a mixture of fear and respect in his eyes.

"I... Wow... That was... Wow..." he whispered the words as he stared at the blonde.

"I uh... What um... Wh-what... What h-ha-happened?" she asked, embarrassed that she couldn't remember what had just happened.

"You were... Wow... You just were describing my life and struggles I've gone through and things I'm dealing with... It was really... Intense," he finally managed to explain.

"Was it.... Uh... D-did it seem... Y-You know... Accurate?" she asked, her face burning.

"It was like you watched a movie about my life then you read me back a summary," he smiled, finally, took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze, which made her smile, and made his grow.

"Ooh, do me next!" Buffy's excited voice came from behind and startled Tara a bit. She jumped- her brain reminding her that the blonde slayer and her boyfriend were also in attendance.

"Oh... I uh... I mean it's uh... It's p-pr-probably not going to be v-very accurate... I'm n-not even sure-" she stammered, but Xander cut her off.

"Guys she's amazing. She reminded me of details about my life that I didn't even remember myself. Really, it's totally worth it," he grinned at her and she blushed again as Buffy sat down in front of her, holding out her hands in anticipation. Tara grasped the slayer's hands in her own, her mind once again returning to the spiritual realm of light.

* * *

When Willow and Anya arrived at the beach, they scoured the now crowded sand for any sign of the rest of the gang. Willow's school work had taken longer than anticipated, and it was nearly 11:00. The witch and the ex demon walked until finally Willow spotted the gang. Tara was lying on her stomach reading over a deck of tarot cards. Xander was sitting by the grill watching with amusement as Riley and Buffy ran through the waves together, diving under ones that were too large for them to swim above. The two approached the group with smiles on their faces.

"Hey!" Willow called, stealing the attention of Tara, Xander, and unfortunately Buffy who just happened to be underneath a large wave.

She gasped and dove under quickly, but it was a narrow escape and she still managed to hit her nose off the ground. She walked out of the ocean laughing despite the injury.

"Hey Will, finish up your homework?" she chuckled, holding her nose a little. Riley followed her out of the water and grabbed a towel for her to wipe her face off with.

"Yep, all finished. I can safely say that all enzymes have been properly matched with their proper genetic material," she giggled, sitting down beside Tara. The blonde grinned up at her. "I'm sorry I couldn't be here for awhile, did everything go ok?" she was more questioning her girlfriend but her voice was loud enough that everyone could hear.

"Better than ok. Willow your girlfriend is a freaking psychic!" Buffy complimented, which only caused a large blush to spread across Tara's cheeks.

"Yeah, she's pretty amazing," Willow giggled and placed a chaste kiss on the blonde's hand as she interlaced it with her own, smiling as she watched the blush only grow darker.

* * *

Tara watched, amused, Anya by her side, as Xander, Willow, Buffy, and Riley dove under another wave.

"I will never understand the appeal that the ocean has over humans," the ex demon stated blandly. She had her eyes buried in a fashion magazine, though it was mostly to point out how some items were underpriced and some were beyond tacky.

The blonde witch only chuckled, nodded in agreement, and returned her gaze to the book she was reading. She looked up again when she heard laughter and saw Xander approaching, followed by her red haired lover, with Riley and Buffy in the rear.

"An, honey, come in the water!" Xander pleaded. The tall blonde simply shook her head and kept her eyes glued to the magazine.

"What about you baby? Come in with me, please?" Willow begged, sunk to her knees, reached over the book and pressed her salt-water covered lips against her girlfriend's.

The blonde Wiccan grew wide eyed, blushed at the fact that they were kissing in public. Willow smirked, took the blonde's bottom lip between her own. Tara got over it. Kissed her back. Felt heat burning in her cheeks. She heard a whistle in the background and nervously pulled away. Willow threw daggers at Xander with her eyes but he laughed.

"Oh come on, it's about time you two kissed in front of us!" he teased, but Tara could see there was more than just amusement in his eyes. There was something about his aura that she could feel. He was happy they were comfortable enough to be intimate in front of them. She gave him a small smile, ducked her head behind her blonde locks, and returned her eyes back to her book while her lover and Xander returned to the water.

* * *

A scream ripped Tara from her thoughts. Willow was lying beside her, the two finding new confidence and being bold enough to lay with their arms encircling each other. Her eyes had been closed and she felt her body growing tired until Anya's sudden shrill pierced the silent air. She and Willow sat up quickly, ready to face any type of hellishly evil ordeal, then both held back giggles at the actual event that had taken place. Xander's face was guilty, Anya's furious, Riley and Buffy's amused.

Sweet, sticky rivers of strawberry ice cream still remained on Xander's hand, but the majority of the pink dessert was down Anya's front side. The ex demon was squealing and trying to wipe the ice cream off her body. Neither witch could suppress giggles as they watched their friend run towards the ocean, Xander running after her, yelling his apologies as he followed.

* * *

It was about 2:00 and the sun was near scorching, but Tara and Anya still refused to get in the water. Anya was more so refusing for the simple fact that she was still less-than-pleased about the ice cream spill, and Tara simply wasn't confident about wearing a bathing suit in the ocean. Or in public. Or at all. She had one on under her clothes, but that was only because she didn't want to face potential embarrassment if for any reason she needed to remove any items of clothing. But Willow and Xander were persistent, trying anything they could to convince their significant others to join them in the waves. Finally, Riley and Buffy came up with an idea, and they ran it by their friends before executing their plan.

The slayer and her lover approached the two blonde women with smiles on their faces.

"If Xander sent you to try another attempt at getting me in the ocean, tell him it's a no," Anya didn't move her eyes from her new magazine, this one about world travel.

"Oh no, it's not that. We just got tired of being dunked by those two goofballs," Buffy laughed, gesturing to where, sure enough, Xander and Willow were taking turns shoving each other under the water. Tara couldn't contain the laughter at the sight.

"Better them than me," Anya replied.

"Well, actually, I'm not so sure about that," Riley's voice changed from sweet to devilish within the sentence. As the two blondes looked up at him, the plan the couple, Willow, and Xander had concocted was set into motion.

Buffy scooped Tara up in her arms, Riley mirroring her with Anya. Both women shrieked as they were carried to the water, Xander and Willow laughing hysterically as they watched.

"Put me down or I swear by all things unholy that you will end up with forks in your-" Anya didn't have time to finish her threat, for she was interrupted by a plunge of cold water as Riley dropped her in the waves. Buffy laughed and did the same with Tara. The blonde Wiccan tried to gasp, remembered she couldn't breathe underwater, and closed her mouth. She blinked her eyes open and tried to look around. Thankfully, the water was clear enough that she could see. She made her way towards the light, broke the surface, and gasped, taking in a large gulp of air.

Anya had already surfaced and was angrily making her way back towards the shore with Xander running after her, trying to explain it was just a joke. Tara looked from Buffy to Riley to Willow, all looking at her with anticipation to her reaction. Then, she started laughing. At first, it was only slight, a few chuckles in her throat. Then, it became a full on stream of giggles that quickly became uncontrollable. She laughed hysterically and waves of relief crashed over all three. Then, when she finally managed to contain herself, she looked at Willow, her eyes playful and her mouth twisted in a sideways smirk.

The red head knew that look. It was one she rarely saw, one that meant she was in serious trouble. Diving back down under the waves, Tara swam through the water and up behind her lover. She pulled her under the surface and the two laughed silently underneath the ocean. They shared a brief kiss before returning above the water.

"So, you're not mad?" Willow asked, grinning a bit as she brushed a wet strand of golden hair out of her girlfriend's face.

"No, I'm not mad. But if you don't mind I'd like to return to sun bathing," Tara giggled, and the red haired Wiccan nodded, kissing her once more before releasing her and allowing her to go back to the shore.

* * *

By the time the day had ended, most of the people who had inhabited the beach had left. There was, however, a group of friends who still remained at sunset. Anya and Xander had snuck away for a few hours to "make up" and by the way they acted around each other when they returned everyone was well aware of the events that had taken place. They sat with their arms around each other. Buffy sat leaning back against Riley, his arms around her waist. Tara had been snuggled against her lover, her hand clutching the red head's shirt and her body curled close, until Willow had sat up, pulling both of them to a sitting position.

"Do you wanna take a walk with me?" her voice was quiet, and though it had a strange calmness to it she smiled. She was slightly nervous, but the blonde nodded and followed the other witch's lead as they stood.

"We're gonna go for a walk, we'll be back soon," Willow announced. After a chorus of "Alright" and "Okay" from the other four, the red haired Wiccan laced their hands together and they started down the beach.

"Xander told me um... About what happened earlier," she started. Tara instantly grew nervous.

"Uh... What... Did he s-say it was... Does he... I..." Tara stammered and Willow laughed, kissing her gently on the lips to silence her.

"He said that you were incredible and that he really likes you. And that he's glad I have you," she continued. A blush crept upon the blonde's face. "And I am too. I don't know what I'd do without you. Really. I'm really glad that you decided to come today. I know that it might have been awkward, especially the car ride. Xander said you barely talked the entire time," Willow ran her hand through the golden locks of her lover.

"I just... I got nervous you know? I m-mean, they're you're friends, not mine... And th-they-" Tara was cut off when her girlfriend pressed another kiss to her lips.

"Hey, they're just as much your friends as they are mine. They really like you Tara, and I'm really glad they do. I hope you like them too," Willow cupped her lover's cheek and Tara couldn't help but smile.

"I do. I really do. I like them a lot. But you wanna know a secret?" a smirk crossed her face and the ginger haired girl laughed.

"Hmm, whatever could you be keeping secret from me?" she grinned.

""I just may happen to like you a tinsy bit more," the blonde Wiccan laughed.

"Well if you didn't, we would definitely have a big problem on our hands," Willow gave her girlfriend a mischievous grin before once more closing the gap between their lips.


End file.
